As the father of three daughters, I reserved the right to interview their dates. Seemed only fair to me. After all, my wife and I’d spent 16 or 17 years feeding them, dressing them, funding braces, and driving them to volleyball tournaments and piano recitals. A five-minute face-to-face with the guy was a fair expectation. I was entrusting the love of my life to him. For the next few hours, she would be dependent upon his ability to drive a car, avoid the bad crowds, and stay sober. I wanted to know if he c

Chinese Communist Party leaders stand up while the international communist anthem is played. / AP BY: Bill Gertz February 24, 2016 5:00 pmChina warned the United States on Wednesday not to adopt punitive currency policies that could disrupt U.S.-China relations after Donald Trump’s win in the Nevada caucus.Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying told reporters in Beijing that “we are following with interest the U.S. presidential election.”Hua was asked about China’s response to a possible Trump presidency and his announced plan to punish China for currency manipulation with a tax on Chinese goods.“Since it belongs to the domestic affair of the U.S., I am not going to make comments on specific remarks by the relevant candidate,” she said.“But I want to stress that China and the U.S., as world’s largest developing and developed countries, shoulder major responsibilities in safeguarding world peace, stability and security and driving world development,” the spokeswoman added.“The sustained, sound and steady growth of China-U.S. relations serves the fundamental and long-term interests of the two countries and benefits the world. We hope and believe that the U.S. government will pursue a positive policy toward China in a responsible manner.”The comments came as Wang Yi, the Chinese foreign minister, is holding talks in Washington that include U.S. concerns about a Chinese military buildup on disputed islands in the South China Sea, and cooperation on dealing with North Korea’s nuclear and missile provocations.Hua said Wang and Secretary of State John Kerry agreed the two sides will enhance cooperation and increase talks and exchanges.“We stand ready to preserve and advance China-U.S. relations together with the U.S. side,” she said.Kerry said he spoke to Wang about reducing tensions and finding diplomatic solutions to competing South China Sea claims.“We want there to be a halt to the expansion and militarization of occupied features,” Kerry said. “Everyone benefits by true demilitarization, non-militarization.”Kerry also said the United States remains committed to freedom of navigation and overflight, “something which China says it does not stand in the way of; it agrees that there should be peaceful freedom of navigation.”Reports from Asia say Chinese state-run media have been ordered by the Communist Party to minimize reporting on the U.S. presidential election.Hong Kong’s Chinese-language news outlet Oriental Daily reported Feb. 5 that the Party’s Propaganda Department, which sets policies for all state-run media, ordered all publications to ban election coverage of U.S. policies toward China and to focus election coverage on negative stories and scandals.Trump won the Nevada caucus with 45 percent of the vote, increasing his chances of winning the Republican nomination later this year.Last month, Trump vowed to impose a 45 percent tariff on Chinese good to offset China’s devaluation of the yuan.“They’re devaluing their currency, and they’re killing our companies,” Trump said. “We are letting them get away with it, and we can’t let them get away with it.”The Obama administration has adopted conciliatory policies toward China on trade and currency issues.Trump, on his campaign website, outlined a hardline approach to dealing with China that involves officially declaring China a currency manipulator and negotiating an end to the practice.Trump also wants to thwart China’s theft of intellectual property and adopt policies aimed at bring jobs back from overseas to the United States.Bolstering the U.S. military and “deploying it appropriately in the East and South China Seas” are other goals.“These actions will discourage Chinese adventurism that imperils American interests in Asia and shows our strength as we begin renegotiating our trading relationship with China,” the Trump website states. “A strong military presence will be a clear signal to China and other nations in Asia and around the world that America is back in the global leadership business.”

The Pope’s pregnant receptionist has been found dead in her apartment on the outskirts of the city.Miriam Wuolou, a 34-year-old of Eritrean origin, was seven-months pregnant when her body was discovered.She had worked at Pope Francis’ home and a priests’ guesthouse called Santa Marta for years.The Italian press reports she worked as a kind of gatekeeper for the Pontiff, as well as for the bishops and cardinals who stay there.The Pope opted to live at the Santa Marta guesthouse after his appointment in 2013, rejecting the grand papal apartments because he found them too sumptuous and he feared isolation.

“The program you are about to see is All in the Family. It seeks to throw a humorous spotlight on our frailties, prejudices, and concerns. By making them a source of laughter, we hope to show — in a mature fashion — just how absurd they are.” CBS Intro at the first showing in January 1971.All in the Family was the CBS top-rated program for years, winning 22 Emmys. It depicted what it’s creators hoped would be a devastating blow to the foundation of the American Family. The archetype for an American working class father was Archie Bunker, a bigoted, opinionated, uneducated World War II veteran -a half wit Inspired by a British sitcom Till Death Do Us Part, Alf Garnet was the Archie Bunker in the BBC version. Unlike Archie, Alf was not a very likable character, Archie Bunker however , was a lovable buffoon.Episode after episode, brought to the forefront a societal issue, Women’s “Lib” , gun control, gay rights, religion, racial integration, — with Archie , and his street level Mugs Mahoney eloquence, pitching the conservative viewpoint.Mike aka ‘meathead’, played by Rob Reiner, son of the shows creator Carl Reiner, a limousine liberal and stalwart of Left wing media manipulation pitching the liberal stance.ArchetypesAll in the Family was regarded as the most influential sitcom in television history. It ridiculed a generation of American Fathers, depicting them as racist, ignorant, sexist opinionated jerks. Archie’s friends are also portrayed in the same fashion, Barney for instance. But of course, Michael’s buddies are portrayed as knowledgeable, articulate and ‘enlightened. In the public mind, traditional conservative ideals became associated with ignorance and intolerance, whereas liberal opinions are associated with education, knowledge, enlightenment and tolerance. “…Archie Bunker was the most devastating ideological scam in the cultural history of television. Archie Bunker was the conservative. He was ignorant, semi-illiterate, racist, mean, cowardly, and a sycophantic bully. Viewers were invited to assume that these were properties of everyone who resisted any civil-rights initiative, who thought favorable notice might be made of anything done by President Nixon, or thought the Vietnam War defensible.” -William F. Buckley Jr.”Archetype,” as used in advertising and propaganda, is based on Carl Jung’s theory that human beings have an innate tendency to visualize via symbolism -concepts, and that the subconscious plays a vital role in forming our opinions. Archetypal images represent the basis of fundamental thought, human needs and desires. They have been used extensively in advertising and by propagandists to subtly persuade the masses to purchase their goods or services, or to manipulate public opinion and thought.

Pope Francis took umbrage at comments Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has made about immigrants, saying in an interview that the real estate mogul was “not Christian.”The pope’s strong dismissal of Trump was in response to measures Trump has proposed on the campaign trail, including building a wall along the U.S.-Mexican border and deporting millions of undocumented immigrants living and working in the U.S.When asked by a reporter, “Can a good Catholic vote for this man?” Francis responded by saying, “Thank God he said I was a politician, because Aristotle defined the human person as ‘animal politicus.’ So at least I am a human person. As to whether I am a pawn — well, maybe, I don’t know. I’ll leave that up to your judgment and that of the people.”2016 Candidates React to Pope and Trump’s Back-and-ForthHe continued: “And then, a person who thinks only about building walls, wherever they may be, and not building bridges, is not Christian. This is not in the gospel. As far as what you said about whether I would advise to vote or not to vote, I am not going to get involved in that. I say only that this man is not Christian if he said things like that. We must see if he said things in that way and in this I give the benefit of the doubt.”The pope made these remarks before he concluded his visit to Mexico, which included a public Mass at the U.S.-Mexico border. Tens of thousands of people from both countries gathered for Mass

Eighties pop star Vanity, who was best known as Prince’s protegée, has died at the age of 57.The former singer, whose real name was Denise Matthews, had been battling severe kidney complications for more than two decades after a near-fatal overdose in 1994.On Monday, her family confirmed her death in Fremont, California, as a result of a small intestine infection. Scroll down for video +6Eighties pop star Vanity (pictured in 1982) was best known as Prince’s protegée. She has died at the age of 57, two decades after a near-fatal crack cocaine overdose in 1994 left her with severe kidney complications+6The pop power couple posed for the cover of Rolling Stone magazine together in April 1983. Prince paid tribute to Matthews on Tuesday at a gig in Melbourne, Australia, saying ‘her and I used to love each other deeply”WE USED TO LOVE EACH OTHER DEEPLY’: PRINCE SINGS TRIBUTE TO VANITY ON AUSTRALIA TOUROn Tuesday, Prince paid tribute to Matthews during a solo performance in Melbourne, Australia.The 57-year-old told the sold-out crowd at the city’s State Theatre on Tuesday that he had just heard the news of her death. In tribute, he dedicated a medley of Little Red Corvette and Dirty Mind to the late singer.’Someone dear to us has passed away, I’m gonna dedicate this song to her,’ The Herald Sun reported.He also changed the lyrics to The Ladder to describe his relationship with Vanity and, for an encore, replaced the final words of The Beautiful Ones, ‘my knees’, with ‘Denise’. ‘Her and I used to love each other deeply,’ he said after the song tribute.’She loved me for the artist I was, I loved her for the artist she was trying to be.’In her 1997 book, Blame It On Vanity, Denise claimed that Prince was the only man she ever truly loved. Canada-born Matthews was a B movie actress and occasional model in 1982 when she was handpicked by Prince to front Vanity 6 a year after he formed the girl band.Initially the R&B-funk group was called The Hookers, fronted by his then-girlfriend Susan Moonsie, along with two of his friends Jamie Shoup and Brenda Bennett.But on meeting Matthews, Prince was dazzled. He recruited her as the lead, renamed her Vanity, renamed the band Vanity 6, and dropped Jamie Shoup.The two went on to date as Prince mentored the band into the charts with the song Nasty Girl. In her 1997 book, Blame It On Vanity, Denise claimed that Prince was the only man she ever truly loved, Jet Magazine reported. They first met at the 1980 American Music Awards and Prince later asked her to be the lead singer of Vanity 6, a band known for their sexually explicit lyrics. The pop power couple later famously posed for the cover of Rolling Stone magazine together in April 1983.But 18 months later, after supporting Prince’s 1999 tour in 1982-1983, Matthews quit the band.She signed with Motown records and dabbled with a new career as an actress with leading roles in The Last Dragon and Action Jackson.In 1994, she suffered a near-fatal overdose on crack cocaine that left her kidneys so damaged she required regular dialysis for the rest of her life.That year, she became a born-again Christian – and even denounced her years as a performer, saying that she wasn’t happy at the time.Last year she issued a plea on a GoFundMe page asking for help paying her medical bills.’Boy, it is not fun suffering in this body of weak flesh,’ she said, ‘but Jesus is straightening out all my crooked places in my heart as I go through this time of pain.’On Tuesday, Prince paid tribute to Matthews during a solo performance in Melbourne, Australia.The 57-year-old told the sold-out crowd at the city’s State Theatre on Tuesday that he had just heard the news of her death. In tribute, he dedicated a medley of Little Red Corvette and Dirty Mind to the late singer.RELATED ARTICLESPrevious1NextColdplay to make music history as they are confirmed as the…’We used to love each other deeply’: Prince dedicates songs…SHARE THIS ARTICLEShare’Someone dear to us has passed away, I’m gonna dedicate this song to her,’ The Herald Sun reported.He also changed the lyrics to The Ladder to describe his relationship with Vanity and, for an encore, replaced the final words of The Beautiful Ones, ‘my knees’, with ‘Denise’. ‘Her and I used to love each other deeply,’ he said after the song tribute.’She loved me for the artist I was, I loved her for the artist she was trying to be.’In the couple’s raunchy Rolling Stone photo shoot in April 1983, Denise could be seen reaching for Prince’s crotch and sliding a finger seductively below his waistband.The front page headline boldly stated: ‘Prince’s Hot Rock’.Besides Prince, Denise was romantically linked to punk rockers Adam Ant, 61, and Billy Idol, 60.She later dated Mötley Crüe bassist Nikki Sixx, and told reporters in 1987 they were engaged. They never married.

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama prides himself on the diversity of his judicial picks. But on Thursday, he charted new territory by nominating Staci Michelle Yandle, who, if confirmed, would become the second-ever out black lesbian federal judge.Obama picked Yandle, who has been in private practice for 20 years and runs an Illinois firm, for a slot on the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Illinois. She would fill a seat being vacated by Judge John Phil Gilbert, who is taking senior status on March 15.“I am pleased to nominate these distinguished individuals to serve on the United States District Court bench,” Obama said of Yandle and a handful of other nominees he put forward Thursday. “I am confident they will serve the American people with integrity and a steadfast commitment to justice.”Yandle’s nomination puts her on track to become the second openly lesbian African-American federal judge in the country. Judge Deborah Batts, nominated by President Bill Clinton, was sworn in as a federal judge in Manhattan in June 1994. Batts took senior status in April 2012.Yandle said in a July 2012 interview that the judicial world needs to be more accepting of the LGBT community.”When I first started practicing, for a while I did not feel comfortable acknowledging my sexual orientation because I didn’t want it to cost me my job,” she said. “I wanted to be judged on my merit and my merit alone. Many members of the LGBT community still have that fear. We are a traditional profession that is conservative in many ways.”HuffPost reached out to both of Yandle’s home state senators for comment on her nomination. A spokesman for Sen. Mark Kirk (R) did not respond, but Sen. Dick Durbin (D) said he plans to work with Kirk to get her confirmed.“Staci Yandle is an excellent candidate for the federal bench in Southern Illinois,” Durbin said in a statement. “She will bring a wealth of knowledge and litigation experience to the position. I am pleased that President Obama has nominated her today. I will be working with Senator Kirk to see her nomination approved by the Senate.”

MARFA — A first-time guest to the Cibolo Creek Creek Ranch, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia was animated and engaged during dinner Friday night, as one of three dozen invitees to an event that had nothing to do with law or politics, according to the ranch owner.
Just hours later, he would be found dead of apparent natural causes, which media outlets were reporting Sunday was a heart attack.

“We discovered judge Scalia in bed, a pillow over his head. His bed clothes were unwrinkled,” said Poindexter.

To four-star generals and admirals, among them the regional combatant commanders who plan and fight the nation’s wars, the directive tells them: “Incorporate climate change impacts into plans and operations and integrate DoD guidance and analysis in Combatant Command planning to address climate change-related risks and opportunities across the full range of military operations, including steady-state campaign planning and operations and contingency planning.”

The directive, “Climate Change Adaptation and Resilience,” is in line with President Obama’s view that global warming is the country’s foremost national security threat, or close to it. Mr. Obama says there is no debate on the existence of man-made global warming and its ensuing climate change. Supporters of this viewpoint label as “deniers” any scientists who disagree.